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New Zealand imposed an immediate ban on assault weapons on Thursday, taking swift action in response to the Christchurch massacre and triggering renewed calls from leading American politicians for curbs in the United States. New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said assault rifles and military-style semi-automatic weapons would be banned with immediate effect, making good on a pledge to ensure that nothing like last week's slaughter of 50 people ever occurs in the Pacific nation again. The killings by an Australian white supremacist have caused national soul-searching over New Zealand's lax gun laws. But the tough crackdown promises to have political repercussions beyond the country's shores, including in the United States where gun control is one of the most divisive political issues. "In short, every semi-automatic weapon used in the terrorist attack on Friday will be banned in this country," Ardern said. She added that high-capacity magazines and devices similar to bump stocks – which allow users to fire weapons faster – will also be banned. Proponents of gun control in the United States and around the world praised the move and denounced the US pro-gun lobby on social media, while American gun supporters defended their constitutional right to bear arms. 'Follow NZ's lead' "This is what real action to stop gun violence looks like," Democratic US Senator and presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders tweeted. "We must follow New Zealand's lead, take on the NRA (National Rifle Association) and ban the sale and distribution of assault weapons in the United States." High-profile Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez contrasted the swift ban with US failure to enact even modest controls following recurring deadly shootings such as the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut in 2012, in which 20 children and six school staff died. "Sandy Hook happened 6 years ago and we can't even get the Senate to hold a vote on universal background checks," Ocasio-Cortez tweeted. "Christchurch happened, and within days New Zealand acted to get weapons of war out of the consumer market. This is what leadership looks like." No reaction was immediately seen on the Twitter feed of US President Donald Trump. Alleged shooter Brenton Tarrant livestreamed the carnage in real-time, and the horrific scenes have heightened global concern over access to guns and the use of social media by extremists. New Zealand's steps include interim measures to prevent any rush to purchase guns before legislation is enacted and effectively outlaw all such weapons already in private possession. "The effect of this will mean that no one will be able to buy these weapons without a permit to procure from the police. I can assure people that there is no point in applying for such a permit," Ardern said. For the guns already out there, Ardern announced a buyback scheme that will cost between Nz$100m and $200m (between $69m and $139m), depending on the number of weapons received and valuations.

Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA)’s builds on its rich heritage of 71 years of manufacturing in South Africa with the 500 000th C-Class (W205) rolling off the line at its East London factory. The East London factory is one of four C-Class plants in the world that manufacture the luxury sedan. The 500 000th W205 unit milestone follows the mid-cycle facelift of the W205 model and coincides with the celebration of 25 years of manufacturing the C-Class sedan. Andreas Engling, CEO of Mercedes-Benz South Africa, said: "Since 1994, when the first C-Class model rolled off our assembly line, we have never looked back in producing excellence from this Plant. Producing the 500 000th unit of the W205 model reaffirms our commitment to manufacturing excellence and the positive multiplier effect that our operations have on the economy of East London. This achievement also follows the R10-billion investment into the expansion of the Plant to equip it for the future." The first customer ready W205 vehicle rolled off the production line in March 2014, marking the beginning of a new era for the six time JD-Power award-winning factory. Since 2014, the East London factory has experienced a number of positive developments, such as the steady increase to production volumes with a significant number of units produced for the domestic market, and exports to more than 80 markets around the world. Additionally, the W205 model enabled the East London factory to produce several variants of the C-Class, which include the Mercedes-AMG C 43 4MATIC, Mercedes-AMG C 63, Mercedes-AMG C 63 S and the C350 Hybrid.

Microsoft has released a new preview version of Windows 10 for the 19H1 build – in other words, the next upgrade expected to be called the April 2019 Update – and the vanishing amount of work to be done seems to indicate that this update is indeed imminent. There were only two bug fixes to make in build 18361 – a cure for an issue with virtual machines, and a fix for some unexpected BitLocker prompts – compared to six bug fixes on the previous release. And this new build comes just four days after that previous one, so the quickening pace of release, and the fact that hardly anything needs fixing now, suggests that Microsoft is on the brink of finishing work on the April 2019 Update. Microsoft also reminded us that it has locked down Windows 10’s default apps, and the current versions of these applications are what will ship with the April 2019 Update when it’s released. Green scream At the same time, there are still a few known issues that remain with the current build 18361, including problems with Creative X-Fi sound cards, some Realtek SD card readers, and most importantly, the fact that some games which use anti-cheat software might trigger a crash (a full-on ‘Green Screen of Death’). Obviously the latter is something that definitely needs to be solved in short order, at least for the gamers out there, but presumably that will be next on the list for bug-squashing. And who knows, we might see the next big update arrive the week after next, just as April begins. Along with the prospect that some people may jump straight from last year’s April update to this one, given the still sluggish adoption of the October 2018 Update as we saw recently.

US President Donald Trump directed his ire on Tuesday at the nation's major social media companies, claiming they're biased against Republicans and attacking them with the same gusto he uses for much of the rest of the media world. Trump's focus on social media began with a morning tweet and continued into a press conference with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, where he reveled in the rightwing leader's use of Trump's trademark phrase "fake news". Trump's complaints come after he spent much of the weekend on Twitter, where he attacked a litany of targets including the late Sen. John McCain of Arizona, General Motors and "Saturday Night Live". "It seems to be if they're conservative, if they're Republicans, if they're in a certain group, there is discrimination and big discrimination," Trump said of the tech giants. "I see it absolutely on Twitter and Facebook." While some tech company executives may lean liberal, they have long asserted that their products are without political bias. Trump's comments came in response to a question about whether he could go along with legislation to make social media companies liable for their content on their platforms. Trump and some supporters have long accused Silicon Valley companies of being biased against them. "Well, we have to do something. I tell you I have many, many millions of followers on Twitter, and it's different than it used to be," Trump said. "Things are happening. Names are taken off. People aren't getting through." Social media companies have taken considerable criticism since the 2016 election, when they were played by Russian agents seeking to sow discord among US voters. The technology giants have thrown millions of dollars, tens of thousands of people and what they say are their best technical efforts into fighting fake news, propaganda and hate speech that has proliferated on their digital platforms. Conservatives are complaining that those steps are disproportionally aimed at their side of the political spectrum. Trump's social media director Dan Scavino posted on his Facebook page this week that he had been temporarily blocked from making comments. Trump tweeted that he would be looking into it. Facebook released a statement saying it has been in touch with Scavino. It explained that limits it has put in place to stop automated bots can have unintended consequences on real people like Scavino, but generally lift in an hour or two. "We've been in touch with him and have apologised for the inconvenience," Facebook said.

Jaguar has announced two distinctive special edition models for its F-Pace; the performance-focused 300 SPORT and the feature-packed Chequered Flag. 300 SPORT Special Edition Powered to perform, the 300 SPORT comes with a choice of two 221kW AWD engine options; the 2.0-litre Ingenium petrol and 3.0-litre V6 diesel. The former has 400Nm of torque and can accelerate from 0-100km/h in 6.1 seconds on its way to a top speed of 233km/h, while the latter offers 700Nm of torque and can accelerate from 0-100km/h in 6.4 seconds with a top speed of 241km/h. The 300 SPORT is identified by distinctive Dark Satin Grey exterior detailing. Starting with the front grille surround, this extends to the side window surrounds, side vents, mirror caps and door finishers, as well as the rear valance. With 300 SPORT badges on the front grille and rear tailgate, it is available exclusively in Yulong White, Indus Silver and Santorini Black. Step inside and the yellow contrast stitching on the instrument panel, centre console and leather seats provide a unique feel to the interior. The 300 SPORT logo is badged on the treadplates, carpet mats and steering wheel and is also embossed on the front headrests. Comfort and convenience features include Touch Pro Navigation with Connect Pro that enables the driver to control essential features remotely. Jaguar’s 12.3" Interactive Driver Display provides a customisable and intuitive driver interface. A Meridian sound system and 14-way electric front seats also form part of the standard specification. Customers buying the 300 SPORT will have the option of upgrading the standard specification with a number of additional features. This includes 18-way seats, with the option of heated front and rear seats. Adaptive Cruise Control and Adaptive Dynamics are some of the other features also available. A range of 2.0-litre AWD powertrains are available with the Chequered Flag, beginning with the more performance-focused 184kW 2.0-litre AWD Ingenium petrol, which powers the F-PACE from 0-100km/h in 7.0 seconds and to a top speed of 217km/h. Two 2.0-litre diesel options offer either 132kW or 177kW, both also with all-wheel drive.

At least 89 people are known to have died after flash floods and landslides tore through Indonesia's Papua region, with the toll expected to rise further as rescuers hunt for dozens still missing, the national disaster agency said on Tuesday. Scores have also been injured in the disaster, triggered by torrential rain on Saturday, with some 6 800 people evacuated to temporary shelters. The military has taken up the grim task of putting mud-caked corpses into body bags, with the search hampered by mountains of debris including rocks and fallen trees. Seventy-four people remain unaccounted for, while around 150 suffered broken bones, cuts and other injuries. "Many people are choosing to stay at shelters because they're still traumatised and scared of more flash floods, so some evacuation centres are packed," said national disaster agency spokesperson Sutopo Purwo Nugroho. The government has issued a 14-day state of emergency in Papua, which shares a border with independent Papua New Guinea on an island just north of Australia. Flooding is common in Indonesia, especially during the rainy season which runs from October to April. In January, floods and landslides killed at least 70 people on Sulawesi island, while earlier this month hundreds in West Java province were forced to evacuate when torrential rains triggered severe flooding. Meanwhile, three people were killed - including two Malaysian tourists - and some 182 were injured after an earthquake on Sunday triggered a landslide on the Indonesian tourist island of Lombok, next to Bali. Lombok was rocked by several earthquakes last summer, killing more than 500 people and leaving over 150 000 homeless. Last September, the country was hit by an earthquake and tsunami in Palu on Sulawesi island which killed around 2 200 people. The Southeast Asian archipelago of some 17 000 islands is one of the most disaster-prone nations on Earth, straddling the Pacific Ring of Fire, where tectonic plates collide. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are common.

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British leader Theresa May's government warned on Sunday it might not have a planned Brexit vote this week unless it feels it could secure a win that avoids a lengthy delay to the EU pullout. Britain has been paralysed by political inaction and chaos as it barrels toward the March 29 end of its 46-year involvement in the bloc without a plan. Parliament has twice resoundingly rejected the separation terms May reached with the other 27 EU leaders last year. She doggedly vowed to bring the lawmakers back by Wednesday for a third vote that - if it finally ended in success - would see her ask the EU for a "technical" Brexit delay until June. But May warned on Sunday that another defeat would almost certainly require Britain to take part in European Parliament elections in May. This would mean "we will not leave the EU for many months, if ever," May wrote in The Sunday Telegraph". Two of her top ministers then warned that May might not even submit her deal for a third vote unless she feels she has sufficient support from her own party members who previously voted against. "It would be difficult to justify having a vote if you knew you were going to lose it," International Trade Secretary Liam Fox told Sky News. "We will only bring the deal back if we are confident that enough of our colleagues... are prepared to support it so that we can get it through parliament," finance minister Philip Hammond added on the BBC. "I mean we are not just going to keep presenting it if we haven't moved the dial," Hammond said. Some EU leaders have suggested postponing Brexit until the end of 2020. A delay that long could give Britain time to decide to either keep much closer EU ties or have Brexit reversed in a new national poll - two options welcomed by a range of European officials. The 27 EU leaders will meet in Brussels on Thursday and Friday to discuss their Brexit options.

US President Donald Trump played down any threat posed by racist white nationalism after the gunman accused of the New Zealand mosque massacre called the president "a symbol of renewed white identity." Trump, whose own previous responses to the movement have drawn scrutiny, expressed sympathy for the victims who died at "places of worship turned into scenes of evil killing." But he declined to join expressions of mounting concern about white nationalism, When asked whether he thought it was a rising threat around the world, he responded, "I don't really." "I think it's a small group of people that have very, very serious problems, I guess," Trump said. "If you look at what happened in New Zealand, perhaps that's the case. I don't know enough about it yet. But it's certainly a terrible thing." Trump was asked about white nationalism and the shooting deaths of 49 people at mosques in Christchurch after he formally vetoed Congress' resolution to block his declaration of a national emergency at the Mexico border. His veto, aimed at freeing money to build more miles of a border wall against illegal immigration, is expected to survive any congressional effort to overturn it. Muslim ban Trump, who as a candidate proposed a ban on all Muslims entering the United States, has drawn criticism as being slow to condemn white supremacy and related violence. After a 2017 clash between white nationalists and anti-racist protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, that left one demonstrator dead, Trump said there were "very fine people on both sides" of the confrontation. He also did not immediately reject the support of David Duke, a former KKK Grand Wizard, during his presidential campaign. Senator Richard Blumenthal tied Trump's inflammatory language to the violence half a world away. "Words have consequences like saying we have an invasion on our border and talking about people as though they were different in some fatal way," Blumenthal said on CNN. "I think that the public discourse from the president on down is a factor in some of these actions."

Since its launch, the A-Class has always been seen as a 'Mercedes for Mom', with its obtuse styling and squat/boxy features, particularly at the rear end, during its first and second iterations. Styling was different compared to the rest of the market, but ultimately its bland shape and slanting bonnet didn't quite seem to fit proportionally with the rest of the car. The latest A-Class, beginning with the third-generation, is a far cry from its forebears. It also happens to be one of the 12 finalists in the 2019 SA Car of the Year competition. Now, it's a beautiful vehicle and I no longer consider it as targeted towards moms - unless the kids are still small enough to fit in the rear seats. I spent some time with the A200 recently and, as a mother, this car did not prove itself as a practical offering. Elbow, head and legroom in the rear is sparse. My toddler had to share the rear seats with some family members over the weekend and even she complained loudly about the lack of wiggle room. The seats also have to be manually operated, so you can't shift into that sweet spot for comfort, as you would with power seats. However, it drives like a dream. Overtaking is child's play, and the burble emanating from the exhaust is exhilarating, and makes you want to press the throttle deeper along straights and corners. Not something you'd want to do with tiny tots in the car though... Driving the A200 is a pleasure. There really are no qualms about its performance. It is powered by a 1.3-litre unit which generates 120kW/250Nm, with a 7G DCT dual-clutch transmission. Fuel consumption is 5.2-litre/100km in peak form, while more realistic figures will see you reaching 6.9-litres to 7.3-litres/100km - still not too bad. Is the A-Class a bad car? Of course not, it's just not the ideal car for parents with growing children. Boot space is ample, and can pack quite the cargo when you're travelling home from a family function up the West Coast. It also performed a charm on track during the dynamic handling and speed testing at Kyalami Circuit during the SA Car of the Year testing days earlier this week. Listening to my fellow jury members, it seems as if it did well, both on track and on the road. Pricing, however, is a bit on the heavy side and begins at R499 000 for the entry-level A200 petrol version, but so are its direct rivals in the form of the BMW X1, Volvo V40 and the Golf 7.

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British Prime Minister Theresa May worked on Friday to pull off an against-the-odds rescue for her European Union divorce deal, after Parliament voted to postpone Brexit to avert a chaotic UK departure in two weeks. May planned to spend the next few days trying to persuade opponents in her Conservative Party and its parliamentary allies to support the withdrawal agreement, which Parliament has resoundingly defeated twice. That left Britain facing a disruptive "no-deal" exit on March 29, when a two-year countdown to departure triggered in 2017 runs out. After months of political deadlock, the House of Commons voted by 413-202 Thursday to ask the EU to delay Britain's exit. The vote in itself won't prevent Britain crashing out of the bloc – an outcome that could mean major disruption for businesses and people in the UK and the 27 remaining EU countries. By law, Britain will leave the EU on March 29, with or without a deal, unless it cancels Brexit or secures a delay. Cabinet Office Minister David Lidington said the likelihood of a no-deal Brexit had "diminished". He said he hoped the UK would "leave as soon as possible in an orderly fashion" if Parliament backs May's withdrawal agreement next week. Any delay must be approved by all 27 remaining EU nations, who are quickly losing patience with British political shenanigans. German Justice Minister Katarina Barley said Britain must use any extra time it is granted productively. Barley, who is half British, told RBB radio on Friday that "giving more time alone will produce no solution". "I think the EU would be willing to give more time, but there must be some sort of a plan what should happen in this time," she said. May is expected to hold another vote on her deal before Wednesday. The following day, she is due to attend an EU summit in Brussels, where she will formally ask the bloc for a Brexit extension. If her deal is approved, May will seek a delay until June 30 to give time for Parliament to pass the legislation needed for Britain's EU exit. She has warned lawmakers opposing the agreement that if it is rejected Britain will need a much longer extension, which could see Brexit postponed indefinitely. Pro-Brexit lawmakers in May's Conservative Party have rejected the withdrawal deal – which lays out the terms of Britain's departure and the outline of future relations with the EU – because they think it keeps Britain too closely bound to the bloc's rules and regulations. But May hopes they will change their mind if they face a choice between her deal and remaining in the EU. Still, she faces a struggle to overturn the huge defeats for the agreement, which was rejected by 230 votes in Parliament in January, and by 149 votes this week. Success would be a remarkable turnaround for May, whose authority has been shredded by a series of defeats in Parliament. This week alone, lawmakers voted to defeat May's withdrawal agreement, to rule out leaving without a deal, and to seek a Brexit delay.

For a long time, BMW South Africa did not reveal it individual model sales figures to the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAMSA). The local arm of the German automaker has made an about-turn in 2019 and has revealed monthly local sales including exports. BMW currently builds its X3 at its Rosslyn factory in Pretoria. The X3 replaced the 3 Series on its production line after 35 years, late in 2018. Best-selling models in Mzansi In January, BWM's best-selling vehicle was the previous generation F30 3 Series (131 units). Last month that number rose to 297 units, and according to Edward Mkwana, head of BMW SA Group Communications, it represents a combination of the F30 and the latest 3 Series (G20) which went on sale on February 25. The second best-selling car was the X3 which had 131 registrations in January, the following month BMW notes 156 X3 were sold in Mzansi. BMW boasts impressive export numbers too, with 3926 X3 SUVs shipped off in January and 5873 in February. The new X5 is the firm's third best-selling vehicle with 192 units sold. The automaker sold 113 units of its 5 Series model so, 111 2 Series models were delivered and the flagship 7 Series saw 16 units sold. Here's a look at how many vehicles BMW registered in the opening two months of 2019:

Facebook and Instagram are getting back on their feet. The two social networks, which together have billions of users, were down for hours on Wednesday in one of the worst outages in Facebook's 15-year history. The BBC said it was the worst. There were signs of life early on Thursday morning, Eastern Time. Instagram tweeted, "Anddddd... we're back," while reports of disruption on Facebook declined significantly. Below is a graph from DownDetector, a website where people can report outages of po[CENSORED]r internet services, as of 4 a.m. ET. Facebook has not commented on the reason for the collapse of its services, but has made clear it was not the result of a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) cyber attack, as had been speculated. "We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack," the company said on Wednesday. Estimates suggest that the problems started at around 12 p.m. ET on Wednesday. NBC Bay Area reported that the issue was caused by a database "overload." A source told the broadcaster: "We are racing to spin up new machines as others go down. Mostly resolved...but it takes time." Business Insider has contacted Facebook for its latest update on the outage.

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Microsoft will stop officially supporting Windows 7 on January 14, 2020, and as that date approaches the company is understandably keen to convince Windows 7 users to upgrade to Windows 10. To achieve this, Windows 7 will start displaying notifications that inform users about the impending cessation of support. The pop-ups will apparently appear occasionally to remind users about upgrading. Nobody likes a nagging popup that keeps appearing on the desktop, so Microsoft has promised that these notifications won’t be too intrusive, and users will have the opportunity to block the messages. As Windows Latest reports, Microsoft has said that “Beginning next month, if you are a Windows 7 customer, you can expect to see a notification appear on your Windows 7 PC. This is a courtesy reminder that you can expect to see a handful of times in 2019.” The pop up will explain that official support for Windows 7 is ending, as well as offering advice on what users need to do to upgrade. A friendly reminder Although Microsoft is ending support for Windows 7 in January of next year – at which point new features and major updates will be ceased, which can lead to PCs running the operating system becoming vulnerable to new threats – Windows 7 remains a very po[CENSORED]r operating system. Only last month we reported that Windows 7 actually gained new users, with the operating system installed on 37.19% of PCs in January 2019. So, it’s understandable that Microsoft is looking at ways to convince this large percentage of users to upgrade. A few years back it was offering Windows 10 as a free upgrade to convince people to move. That offer has since expired, so if you are looking to upgrade to Windows 10, you will now need to pay for a license. Will these notifications finally make people upgrade? Perhaps, but if many people wouldn’t make the jump with the offer of a free upgrade, Microsoft may struggle to convince them now. Also, Microsoft’s promise of the notifications appearing “a handful of times” is key. If the notification appears too frequently, it could annoy users and force them to dismiss the message completely. Too little, and people might not realize how important it will be to upgrade.

British MPs will vote on Wednesday on whether the country should leave the EU without a deal in just over two weeks, after overwhelmingly rejecting a draft divorce agreement. The House of Commons is expected to vote against a "no deal" Brexit, although this could still happen on March 29 unless it can agree on what should happen instead. MPs on Tuesday rejected for a second time the withdrawal deal negotiated by British Prime Minister Theresa May, despite her obtaining last-minute assurances from EU officials. Some eurosceptics are now pressing to leave with no deal, but May warned this scenario could cause "significant economic shock" – and many MPs agree with her. If the "no-deal" option is voted down, the government is planning another Commons vote on Thursday on whether or not to request a Brexit delay. But May warned: "Voting against leaving without a deal and for an extension does not solve the problems we face." "The EU will want to know what use we mean to make of such an extension. This House will have to answer that question," she said, her voice half-breaking due to a cold. "Does it wish to revoke Article 50?" she said, referring to the Brexit process. "Does it want to hold a second referendum? Or does it want to leave with a deal but not this deal?" British media have reported that May could make a desperate attempt at a third vote on her deal, hoping that Brexit hardliners will fall in line. But Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the main opposition Labour party, said the text was "clearly dead" and urged her to back his own plan for closer economic ties with the EU. A group of lawmakers will on Wednesday put forward an alternative proposal to delay Brexit until May 22 and agree a series of interim agreements with the EU lasting until 2021. But Michel Barnier, the EU's chief Brexit negotiator, said Brussels had nothing more to offer and must now brace for the possibility of a messy divorce. "The EU has done everything it can to help get the withdrawal agreement over the line," he tweeted after Tuesday's result. "The impasse can only be solved in the #UK. Our 'no-deal' preparations are now more important than ever before." The EU has done everything it can to help get the Withdrawal Agreement over the line. The impasse can only be solved in the #UK. Our “no-deal” preparations are now more important than ever before.

The first purely electrically powered sports car from Porsche, the Taycan, is enjoying significant attention worldwide. The vehicle will not be presented to the public until September and its final design is not yet known; nonetheless, there are more than 20 000 people around the world with serious interest in buying one of their own, as the company has confirmed at the Geneva International Motor Show. That is the number that has already registered to join a list of prospective buyers – and registration requires a down payment of €2500. The Porsche Taycan will have its debut in September, and market launch is scheduled to take place before the end of the year. The vehicle will be able to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in considerably less than 3.5 seconds. It will have a range of more than 500km as measured in accordance with the NEDC. Moreover, it will be possible to add sufficient charge for a range of 100km in just four minutes (measured in accordance with the NEDC). "The overwhelming interest in the Taycan shows us that our customers and fans are just as excited about the first Porsche electric athlete as we are – and we’ve therefore increased our production capacities," confirms Detlev von Platen, Member of the Executive Board for Sales and Marketing at Porsche AG. "The Taycan will be the most sporty and most technically advanced vehicle in its segment – a true Porsche."

UK Cabinet members called for last-minute concessions by the European Union so Theresa May can get her Brexit deal through Parliament this week. Cabinet minister Andrea Leadsom, a leading Brexit supporter, called for “one last heave” by British and EU negotiators to help the prime minister seal the agreement on the UK’s exit. She appealed to Labour, Conservative and Scottish Nationalist Party members to back the deal and defer seeking changes until they debate legislation in the weeks ahead. “I think we all need to support the prime minister,” Leadsom said in an interview. That would mean “that we can move on” while leaving open the possibility to “potentially amend how we do this,” she said. Talks on Brexit have all but stalled after the EU unveiled a proposal on Friday that the UK had already rejected days earlier. Still, a Royal Air Force jet was standing by to fly May to Brussels in case of a breakthrough in the negotiations. Last-Ditch Moves If May is forced to seek a Brexit delay this week, the EU is preparing to impose punitive conditions, including a multi-billion pound increase in the 39 billion-pound divorce payment, the Telegraph reported on Sunday, without saying how it got the information. Some lawmakers are telling May to pull the vote because they expect a defeat on a similar scale as on her first attempt in January, the Times reported. Parliament will give its verdict on May’s draft accord with Brussels on Tuesday. That’s likely to lead to a further vote in the House of Commons to delay exit day beyond March 29, allowing Parliament to take control over what happens next out of May’s hands. The prime minister has warned that a defeat risks scuttling her blueprint for Brexit and replacing it with a scaled-down plan, potentially keeping the UK inside the EU’s single market and customs union. Markets have already priced in a Brexit delay. For pro-Brexit campaigners, that would be a betrayal of the 2016 referendum vote to leave the EU. Exposing Weakness Cabinet ministers urged their Tory colleagues on Sunday to support May’s deal, with Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt saying both the EU and British parliamentarians need to be “realistic.” Health Secretary Matt Hancock insisted defeat is not inevitable. “Benjamin Franklin said of the US Constitution, ‘I vote for this with all its faults’ and I think that’s the approach that we need to take on Tuesday,’’ Hancock told Sky News. Outlining tactics for Tuesday’s vote, the opposition Labour Party said it wouldn’t offer an amendment to force a second referendum. “There is a growing feeling that Tuesday should be a straight up-down vote on the deal,’’ Keir Starmer, Labour’s Brexit spokesman, told Sky News. “Tuesday is about exposing the weakness of the prime minister.”